FWIW: I called Lionel customer service but never got through...so I sent an e-mail to Talk to Us.
If we don't hear back on this matter this year, then perhaps a letter to Howard Hitchcock will be my last hope. He responded to my letter 2 years ago regarding the scale PE trucks and paint blotches. I still think the written word via USPS conveys thought and feeling beyond e-mails and phone calls.